Stranded Together | Hermitcraft Mermaid au

Chapter 7: Scars And Sun Hats

Cub stepped off of the paddle boat through a thin layer of clear ocean water, and into wet sand. One hand held his shoes and the other pulled the boat to the shore.

With the help of Impulse and Zedaph, the three of them moved the boat up far enough onto the shore where it wouldn't be washed away by the water. Still holding his shoes in hand, Cub walked onto the sandy beach.

He adjusted the brown hat on his head and took a look around the bay. To his left was a cliff like area, which was where the cave Joe and False had sailed to. In front of him, the sand thinned out into the underbrush of a green forest of trees and brush. And to his right was another rocky area, although the rocks in that direction were less jagged and were more like separate rocks rather than a cliff.

The rocks that made up the cliff structure Joe and False had sailed to stretched too far out into the ocean to move around without swimming, but the rocks to his right could be maneuvered around if he sacrificed getting a little damp.

"I'm going into the forest!" Came a yell from up ahead.

"Wait- I'm coming with you!" Shouted someone else.

"Do you think someone else has been here before?" Someone asked in a quieter voice.

"I don't know, it's definitely possible since this was a pretty easy find..." Someone else replied.

Cub was walking up the beach and towards the forest following behind the rest of the group but a distant chatter caught his attention.

He glanced over his shoulder to where he thought the sound was coming from, finding himself looking at the rocks to his right. No one else from the crew was behind him, and the only thing behind him was the water softly crashing onto the sand and into the rocks.

Cub raised an eyebrow and changed direction to start walking back towards the ocean.

He walked back down the beach almost to the boasts and waited for a moment. When the small waves reached their furthest point back and the water was still, for a split second, he could hear it again. The sounds of people whispering. He couldn't make out anything they said but it was definitely different from the soft 'wshhh' of the waves.

The voice of his fellow Hermit grew distant as he walked up to the shore line, the water barely washing against his feet, and he stared out at the horizon for a moment, hoping to hear it again.

It was possible he could be going insane, he thought to himself, he had been on the ship for a long time-

But then there it was again, coming from the rocky area that was opposite of the cave where False and Joe had gone.

He glanced back at the crew as they wandered into the forest, some were staying on the sand and fooling around, then Cub looked back to the rocks where he heard the sound coming from.

The water washed up past his ankles as he stepped carefully around the big rocks jutting out of the sand. His pants, even though he had rolled them up, were getting a little damp from occasional splashes of water. One hand holding his shoes, and the other placed on his brown hat to keep it in place as he waded through the water, and away from the other crew members.

As he rounded the last rock he laid eyes on another sandy bay, much like the one the crew had actually rowed up to but smaller, and more encased by rocks and cliffs.

A particularly larger wave splashed against his legs, soaking a good portion of his pants with water. He let out a quiet exclamation of surprise as he stumbled up further onto the sand to get away from the water.

As he lifted his head up, he was met with two pairs of eyes staring at him from a little ways further out in the water.

One of two figures that was watching him had their full head above the water, red scales decorated his face, and dirty blonde hair fell between his eyes. The other one barely had their eyes above the water, and what was visible of their face had the same sort of speckled pattern but with brown scales, making it look more like freckles than scales. He had brown hair that swept over his eyes and floated in the water around him.